Hot weather, a string of bank holidays and the royal wedding created a feelgood factor that boosted consumer confidence last month, the Nationwide Building Society said.

Although the Nationwide said consumer sentiment remained lower than in May 2010, it said the 11-point increase in confidence last month was one of the highest since the survey began in 2004.

Consumers remained cautious about their current financial situation but were more upbeat about their prospects for the future. More consumers were making plans to spend money over the coming months, the Nationwide said.

Robert Gardner, the society's chief economist, said: "The warmest April on record, combined with the feel-good factor of consecutive bank holidays and the royal wedding, helped push up the consumer confidence index in May. However, despite recording one of the biggest monthly jumps ever, the index still sits at 55, nine points lower than the same period last year and well below the historical average."

Consumer confidence fell sharply to a record low of 40 in February this year, following the increase in VAT to 20% at the start of 2011. Gardner said that while consumers were starting to cultivate a more positive view of the future, they currently faced challenging circumstances. Household budgets remained under "significant pressure".

"It is too early to say whether consumer confidence is in a sustained recovery. We would need to see consumer confidence continue to rise over the coming months, for us to be able to say that the economic recovery is truly being felt by the British public. For this to happen we will probably have to see a real improvement in employment and wages, or a fall in inflation that would help to boost the purchasing power of people's take home pay."